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2 Injured In Kansas RV Crash Return To Minnesota

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OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (AP) — A Minnesotawoman and her 17-year-old son who were injured in a motor home crash that killed five family members have left the Kansas hospital where they had been treated since the accident occurred.

Pauline Kerber, 46, of Jordan, Minn., has been released from Overland Park Regional Medical Center and has returned to her hometown, according to a statement Tuesday from the medical center. Her son, Adam Kerber, has been transferred to a hospital “closer to home,” the statement said.

The statement did not name the specific community in which Adam is now being treated. It also did not give a condition for him or say what day he and his mother left the Kansas hospital.

The mother and son were among a group of family members and friends who were traveling back to Minnesotafrom Texas on April 1 when their recreational vehicle hit a guardrail and a concrete bridge rail on Interstate 35 near the northeastern Kansas town of Williamsburg. The Kansas Highway Patrol described the vehicle as a truck that had been set up with living quarters and was towing a trailer. The vehicle broke through the guardrail and plunged into a ravine.

The patrol identified the dead as Tom Kerber, 25, of New Prague, Minn., and Jessica Kerber, 10, Joy Kerber, 14, and James Kerber, 12, all from Jordan, Minn. Tom Kerber’s wife, Melissa Kerber, 24, also died.

Those who were injured ranged in age from 2 to 30 and were taken to various hospitals. Several had been released earlier. One 8-year-old boy remained in fair condition Tuesday at Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Mo. A spokeswoman for Children’s Mercy also said two patients had been released, one Tuesday and the other on Saturday.

The cause of the crash has been under investigation. The patrol did not immediately return a phone call Tuesday seeking the status of that investigation.

Another son of Pauline’s, Russell Kerber, 24, said in the statement from Overland Park Regional Medical Center that the family is “one step closer” to being together again now that his mother and Adam have left the Kansas hospital and “for that we are very happy.”

“We know we have a long road ahead, but the outpouring of love and prayers, have helped us through this tragedy,” Russell Kerber said. “Healing is taking place.”